Once upon a time a myth was born that insects, unlike animals, are just a machines that not capable of learning and survive only based on their instincts. That myth has become the widespread opinion. Of course, this opinion is indeed erroneous, like many other widespread opinions. Let us try to find out which part is a myth and which part is true.

Photo: Vladimir Ilyich Lenin (1870 – 1924) lying in state in the Kremlin. (Photo by Hulton Archive/Getty Images). 1924

Important! For the same article in Russian language click here.

Something quite intriguing is happening within Russian-speaking internet during the last few – should you type a fully academic inquiry (at least, according to Russian academic requirements) in national search engines for "Lenin's mausoleum" – the first thing you get (even in top 10 searches) is website pages talking about black magic and occult. Website authors view this construction differently, but unconditionally agree on one thing: the mausoleum of the "leader of the world proletariat” – the essence of a magical artifact, a sort of “energy vampire”. It was built with a certain purpose: to drain the energy out of miserable Soviet citizens on one hand; and to poison the anthroposphere of one-sixth part of the earth with its vibes (the exact territory that was occupied by the former Soviet Union), depriving the Russian people of will to resist on the other hand. Complete nonsense? No doubt. Nevertheless, an intriguing one. Well, probably because some oddities do exist in mausoleum's history. These oddities are the thing we are going to discuss this time. First, let me refresh you memory on the subject.

Kashir Mir, 34, poses for a photograph at his workplace, Juliet Wig Shop, in the London constituency of Brent Central, Britain, April 13, 2015. Mir, who was born in Pakistan, said: “I will vote but it's a secret. I also hope they can manage immigration better as I have been stopped and interviewed for hours returning from Pakistan. I'm an honest man, working here and paying my tax”. Brent, a northwest London neighbourhood that's home to Wembley football stadium, is among the most ethnically diverse areas in the United Kingdom. As the country approaches a closely fought election on May 7, Reuters photographer Eddie Keogh visited shopkeepers to get their views on the poll. (Photo by Eddie Keogh/Reuters)

A giraffe appears almost to be doing the splits as it bends to drink at a watering hole on a reserve in Mkuze, South Africa in September 2023. (Photo by Peter Batty/Solent News)

An alarmed squirrel. (Photo by Mary McGowan/Barcroft Images/Comedy Wildlife Photography Awards)

Two young women pose for a portrait, dressed in robes after collecting their Bachelor degrees in Conakry on October 12, 2020. Presidential elections are to be held on October 18, with incumbent President bidding for a third term in office, defying critics who say he forced through a new constitution this year enabling him to sidestep two-term presidential limits. (Photo by John Wessels/AFP Photo)

A humanoid robot named “Yangyang” shows a facial expression during its demonstration at the Global Mobile Internet Conference (GMIC) 2015 in Beijing, China, April 29, 20155. The android was produced jointly by China's Shanghai Yangyang Intellegent Robot Science Service center and Japanese professor Hiroshi Ishiguro, with the aim of popularising robotics among the young. (Photo by Kim Kyung-Hoon/Reuters)

Clown/comedian/filmmaker Pierre Etaix attends The Academy Of Motion Picture Arts And Sciences' Presents “Pierre Etaix: The Laughter Returns” at AMPAS Samuel Goldwyn Theater on November 16, 2011 in Beverly Hills, California. (Photo by Valerie Macon/Getty Images)